Mashed Red Potatoes are delicious enough to serve as a holiday side dish, but easy enough to make on a busy weeknight. Lightly salty and rich with olive oil, butter and garlic, you'll want to serve these potatoes with everything!
Whether I'm making this Mashed Red Potatoes recipe or traditional mashed potatoes, I've learned one important trick: steam the potatoes, don't boil them. When you steam potatoes, there's no need to worry about the potatoes becoming overcooked or water logged as they can when you boil them.
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Red Potatoes FAQ
Red potatoes are considered waxy, meaning they have more moisture / less starch. They are great for mashing because they are naturally smooth and creamy. That said, take care to not over-mash as they can become gluey faster than russet or Yukon gold potatoes. The key is to steam them until they are very tender and mash easily.
You don't have to peel red potatoes. What a time saver! Their skins have a delicate flavor (not bitter) and are very thin and tender. They also add a pretty pop of color!
If you don't feel like hunting down a scale at your grocery store or farmer's market, a good rule of thumb is 7 or 8 small red potatoes, or 14 or 15 red new potatoes.
Serve With
I love to serve these potatoes (when I'm not making Yukon Gold Mashed Potatoes, Twice Baked Potatoes or Italian Roasted Potatoes) with everything from Turkey Meatloaf or Meatloaf with Oatmeal, Bacon Wrapped Pork Chops and Roasted Lamb Chops or Pan-Fried Lamb Chops to Duck Confit during the year and alongside Turkey Roulade or Dry Brine Turkey and Cornbread Dressing with Turkey Gravy without drippings for our Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners.
And if you love potatoes like I do, don't miss these Breakfast Potatoes or these Skillet Potatoes - both are impossibly crispy because of an unusual technique!
How to Make Mashed Red Potatoes
Step 1: Steam cubes of red potato until very tender.
Step 2: Cook and stir garlic in melted butter then stir in salt and olive oil.
Step 3: Pour olive oil mixture over tender red potato cubes in a large bowl and mash to desired consistency. Serve!
Recipe Video
Mashed Red Potatoes
Ingredients
- 2 pounds red potatoes cut into 1-inch cubes (7 or 8 small red potatoes)
- 4 tablespoons butter ¼ cup
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic about 3 large cloves
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
- minced chives for garnish, optional
Instructions
- Place raw red potato cubes in a large steamer basket over a large pot of boiling water. Cover and steam until very tender, 25 to 30 minutes.
- When potatoes are nearly tender, melt butter in a small saucepan. Add garlic; cook and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add salt and olive oil; stir until just heated through. Remove from heat.
- Transfer tender potatoes to a large bowl. Pour olive oil mixture over and mash with a potato masher to desired consistency. Garnish with chives if desired and serve.
Notes
- If you don't have a steamer, feel free to boil potatoes instead. To a large pot, add cubed potatoes and enough cold water to cover by 1-inch. Bring to boil over high heat. Reduce heat and let summer until potatoes are tender. Drain and proceed with recipe.
- If you're not a fan of olive oil in these mashed red potatoes, no problem! Just increase the butter to 10 tablespoons and skip the olive oil. Likewise, if you want to use just olive oil for a vegan / dairy-free version, use 10 tablespoons of olive oil (½ cup + 2 tablespoons) and skip the butter.
- To make Garlic Mashed Red Potatoes, mash in the roasted garlic cloves from one or two heads of roasted garlic along with the olive oil mixture before serving. To roast heads of garlic: remove the outer papery skin and cut off the top ½ inch of the head to expose garlic cloves. Drizzle with olive and wrap in aluminum foil. Transfer to a baking dish or baking sheet to catch any drips and roast at 400˚F for 35-40 minutes until tender and lightly brown. Let cool slightly before squeezing cloves out with your fingers or lifting out with a cocktail fork.
They were perfect!!
So glad you enjoyed them, Christina!
I added about 1/4 cup of sour cream (for the 12 serving recipe) and a tsp of garlic powder and these are some of the best mashed potatoes I've ever had or made! Made them for thanksgiving & deff saving this for Christmas!
I love to hear this, Sarah! Thank you for coming back to let me know.
Can these be made a few days in advance and reheated in the oven?
Hi Sydney! You can make these up to 2 days in advance and refrigerate. You can reheat them in an oven preheated to 350˚F. Gently stir in an extra 1 to 2 tablespoons of milk or half and half per cup of mashed potatoes (don't stir too much though or the potatoes can turn gummy), then spread in an even layer in a buttered baking dish and dot with butter if you like. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and reheat 20 to 35 minutes until hot - they should read 165˚F at the center on an instant read thermometer. I hope that helps!
Just made them and from now on I will be steaming potatoes for mashed potatoes. Thanks
I love to hear that, Rhonda! Thank you for coming back to let me know.
I made these this afternoon. I added more garlic flavor and salt by adding garlic salt and a tad of regular table salt. I also sprinkled in some black pepper and I also mashed them with a little cream and milk. Delicious!
So glad you enjoyed these and made them your own!
These are sooo good! I was definitely skeptical to mash them with olive oil. I’m so used to mashing potatoes with milk. These are delicious! Thank you for sharing the recipe.
My pleasure, Heather! So glad you're enjoying these.